Benghazi review finds systematic security faults

New York Times

Published 10:02 pm, Tuesday, December 18, 2012

WASHINGTON — An independent inquiry into the attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya that killed four Americans on Sept. 11 sharply criticizes the State Department for a lack of seasoned security personnel and for relying on untested local militias to safeguard the compound, congressional and State Department officials said Tuesday night.

The investigation into the attacks on the mission and CIA annex that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three others also faulted State Department officials in Washington for ignoring requests from officials at the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli for more guards and safety upgrades for the diplomatic mission.

The panel also blamed the State Department for waiting for specific warnings of imminent attacks before acting, rather than adapting security procedures and protocols to a deteriorating security environment. By this spring, Benghazi, a hotbed of militant activity in eastern Libya, had experienced a string of assassinations, as well as an attack on a British envoy's motorcade.

On June 6, a bomb was planted near the U.S. mission's outer wall, blowing out a 12-foot hole.

Finally, the report also blamed two major State Department bureaus — Diplomatic Security and Near Eastern Affairs — for failing to coordinate and plan adequate security at the mission. The panel also determined that a number of officials had shown poor leadership.

In response to the panel's findings, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a letter to Congress that she was accepting all 29 of the panel's recommendations, several of which are classified.

Clinton is taking specific steps to correct the problems, according to officials. They say the State Department is asking permission from Congress to transfer more than $1.3 billion from funds that had been allocated for spending in Iraq. This includes $553 million for additional Marine security guards, $130 million for diplomatic security personnel and $691 million for improving security at installations abroad.

On Monday, an independent panel that was established to investigate the attack presented the report to the State Department. The panel, called an accountability review board, led by Thomas Pickering, a veteran diplomat. It includes four other members, among them Mike Mullen, the retired admiral who served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The board is authorized by a 1986 law intended to strengthen security at diplomatic missions.

On Thursday, William Burns and Thomas Nides, both deputy secretaries of state, will testify before both panels. Clinton, who is still recovering from a concussion she suffered last week after fainting while sick with stomach flu, is at home this week.

The head of the House panel, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., has made it clear that she plans to ask Clinton to testify at a future time.